Tag: blogs

2022 Wrap Up

L. Ryan StormsLeave a comment

Hi, friends! I hope you’ve all had a wonderful 2022 and that you’re anticipating 2023 with high hopes. I’ve been working hard this year and I look forward to continuing on my writing journey throughout the next year. I can’t wait to share with you the YA fantasy that’s on its way next year, but for now it’s a secret, so here’s a summary of what I accomplished on my writing journey in 2022 instead.

Writing Life

Books published: 1
eBooks published: 1
Signings & Appearances: 14
Personal Essays Written: 2
Manuscript words written: >122,000
YA manuscripts finished: 2
Manscripts queried: 1
Queries sent: 74
Query rejections: 40
Query no response: 24
Queries still open: 0
Partial Manuscript Requests: 2 (both eventually requested the full manuscript)
Full Manuscript Requests: 10
Revise & Resubmit Requests: 4
Total accumulative completed manuscripts (2011-2022): 15
Online pitch contests entered: 1
Blog posts written: 6
Books read: 44
Friends’ Manuscripts read: 1
Writing friends made: Never enough!

Personal Life

Family members who got Covid (including yours truly): 3 (out of 4), 2 in July & 1 the week before Christmas
Exchange Students hosted: 1, from Germany!
Money spent on kids’ hobbies: Approximately 1 bazillion dollars, give or take a million
Pets lost: 2 (one chicken, one dog) 😦
Pets gained: 2 (budgies!)
Broadway shows seen: 2 (Phantom of the Opera both times, don’t ask)

2020 Wrap Up

L. Ryan Storms2 Comments

I shoot some stats just about every year, mostly to prove to myself that, yes, I *am* actually moving forward in this thing called a writing career.

Given the craziness of 2020 all around, *I* wouldn’t even blame me if I’d chosen to fall off the face of the earth, or hide under a blanket and never come out. But we’re stronger than that here in the Storms household. Which means, nevertheless, we persist.

And persist we did.

2020 Writing

Books published: 1
eBooks published: 1
Signing events attended: 0 – Thank you very much, COVID. (Also, get your vaccine so you can come to 2021 signings. Because they will be happening as soon as I get my vaccine and the world is in a better place all around.)
Independent Book Award Entries: 4
Manuscript words written: >90,000
YA manuscripts finished: 1
PB manuscripts finished: 1
YA manuscripts started: 1
Adult manuscripts started: 1
Manscripts queried: 3
Queries sent: 96
Query rejections: 55
Query no response: 33
Queries still open: 19
Total accumulative completed manuscripts (2011-2020): 7
Online pitch contests entered: 2
Blog posts written: 11
Number of new SCBWI critique group members discovered: 1 (We’re up to 5 in our cozy little group!)
Writing friends made: Never enough! Writers, find me on Twitter.

Ebook sale promos are great for boosting a book! For a brief moment in time, the ebook for A Thousand Years to Wait ranked higher than Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in the U.K. and was in the top ten in Canada as well. It might have even been higher…but I didn’t think to look until several days into the sale. <shrugs>

Happy Holidays, friends! I hope you’re all safe and healthy and happy and that 2021 brings new and great things. (Preferably all good things, no more disasters and viruses, please. 2020 brought plenty of that, thanks.)

Much love to you all, from my house to yours! xo

Santa came to our house. If you celebrate, hopefully he visited you, too!

With a Little Help from my Friends

L. Ryan Storms1 Comment

I did a thing yesterday. 

Actually I did two things. I got to see my name in the byline on a front page article in the local newspaper for the first time. If I thought I was excited about that, imagine how I felt when I saw how many of my friends and family were just as elated as I was. All the feels, friends. All the feels.

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It’s hard to verbalize the gratitude I have for every person who ‘likes’ my posts and tweets about seeing my article in print. How can I possibly put into words how each and every one of those thumbs up and digital red hearts makes my own heart swell with appreciation? 

Hmm. I guess I just did. At least a little.

There are so many times as a writer when I’m keenly aware of the weight of defeat that results from receiving constant rejection from agent after agent and publisher after publisher. For years. Literally, years. In those moments, it’s so easy to give in to the belief that perhaps I’m not good enough and maybe I should just give up. After all, in a world already supersaturated with books and news and blogs, who’s even paying attention to my words, to my progress as a writer?

And that’s why those digital hearts matter. It’s proof that I’m not alone on my journey, evidence that I have a cheering section I don’t always remember. By and far, it’s the weirdest and best cheering section anyone could possibly ask for, composed of old friends, family, new acquaintances, writer-friends, people I met once in my life but feel like I know just as well as myself, and random high school classmates I talk to now more than I ever did in high school. They live all around the nation and all around the globe, and they celebrate every step forward with me. It’s the craziest, ragtag, motley crew of a cheer squad I’ve ever known and it’s mine. So thank you, friends. Thank you for reminding me I’m not alone. (Cue The Beatles.)

So at the beginning of this blog post, I said I did two things yesterday. I bet you’re waiting for me to elaborate on item number two. But that’s a post for another day. It’s a good thing, I promise. And like so much in the publishing world, it must remain a secret for now, but I’ll release the news as soon as I can and then we can all celebrate together. I’ll bring the cake and confetti if you bring the chips and dip.